I've been keeping Lygodactylus williamsi (Electric Blue Gecko) for the past 2 years now and I've had mixed results with hatching their eggs. Well now I think I've figured it out.
At first I would leave the eggs in the setup with the adults after they were laid. This approach is how I got my first baby last year. The eggs are sticky when they are first laid and are impossible to remove once they harden without breaking them. The problem with this is that the females have a bad habit of eating each others eggs. At first I thought it might have to do with the need for extra calcium (even though their chalk sacks are quite pronounced) but even after I added a small dish to their tank, they still do it. I'm starting to think it has something to do with territory and not calcium.
Next, I covered the eggs with a small lid when they were laid (which is almost always on the glass in the same spot). This way I figured the eggs would be protected from the adults. The problem with this is that the eggs didn't get enough humidity (even with small holes punched in the lid) and they dried up half way through incubation.
So, after some more research I decided to give something else a try. In the wild they often lay eggs inside bamboo stems. I duplicated this by rolling up a thin piece of cardboard into a tube (I used the tube inside a paper towel roll). I made the width of the tube a little wider than the geckos. Guess what.....they LOVE to lay eggs in them. And after they do I can easily remove the tube (they are taped to the glass) and put them in my homemade incubator. You have to be extremely careful if you decide to unroll the tube because the eggs can break (I lost 2 this way).
I end up using a small tuperware container with a few holes punched in the top. I line the bottom with damp moss and place the piece of unrolled cardboard on a small tile in the middle. They eggs CAN'T get wet but must have a humidity level around 80%. If they get wet from condensation you have to dab them gently with a paper towel. I incubate them at 80 F. for about 2 months and if everything goes accordingly you should have some TINY baby gecko. Last night I had 4 of them hatch!
Here's a pic to show you how tiny the eggs are.
At first I would leave the eggs in the setup with the adults after they were laid. This approach is how I got my first baby last year. The eggs are sticky when they are first laid and are impossible to remove once they harden without breaking them. The problem with this is that the females have a bad habit of eating each others eggs. At first I thought it might have to do with the need for extra calcium (even though their chalk sacks are quite pronounced) but even after I added a small dish to their tank, they still do it. I'm starting to think it has something to do with territory and not calcium.
Next, I covered the eggs with a small lid when they were laid (which is almost always on the glass in the same spot). This way I figured the eggs would be protected from the adults. The problem with this is that the eggs didn't get enough humidity (even with small holes punched in the lid) and they dried up half way through incubation.
So, after some more research I decided to give something else a try. In the wild they often lay eggs inside bamboo stems. I duplicated this by rolling up a thin piece of cardboard into a tube (I used the tube inside a paper towel roll). I made the width of the tube a little wider than the geckos. Guess what.....they LOVE to lay eggs in them. And after they do I can easily remove the tube (they are taped to the glass) and put them in my homemade incubator. You have to be extremely careful if you decide to unroll the tube because the eggs can break (I lost 2 this way).
I end up using a small tuperware container with a few holes punched in the top. I line the bottom with damp moss and place the piece of unrolled cardboard on a small tile in the middle. They eggs CAN'T get wet but must have a humidity level around 80%. If they get wet from condensation you have to dab them gently with a paper towel. I incubate them at 80 F. for about 2 months and if everything goes accordingly you should have some TINY baby gecko. Last night I had 4 of them hatch!
Here's a pic to show you how tiny the eggs are.